Taciturn
by GalaxyDrifter
Summary: Armin struggles through adulthood, deciding to work at a local bookstore versus attending a prestigious college. Separated from his friends and unfortunately broke, life has not been kind. However, his unexpected encounters with a cold-blooded, mysterious woman lead to dangers far from normal. AruAni. Rated T for language, violence, and suggestive themes.


**Hello everyone! This is actually my very first fanfiction that I've sat down with and written a serious plot for... so bear with me. AruAni. Rated T for language, violence, and suggestive themes. Enjoy!**

Downright Disastrous

I parked my bicycle haphazardly behind a garbage bin and rushed across the promenade, glancing at my watch in desperation. 8:41 AM.

Standing outside of a nearby shop, I briefly checked my reflection in the glass window.

My shirt was plain, a white and green checkered polo that I'd barely had time to iron. I'd quickly thrown on some khakis and sandals, anticipating yet another hot summer day. Overall, I looked decent, but my hair was a blonde disarray. I was both anxious and tired. Upon closer inspection of my face, you'd spot unsightly dark eye bags and a slight redness in both eyes. Unfortunately, it was my first day of work.

Hoping for the best, I entered Expeditions Bookstore. I arrived just as it turned 8:45 AM.

As soon as I went inside, the musky smell of dust and old books hit me like a wave. For others, it may seem unpleasant, but I felt comfortable already. Then, there was the manager.

"Armin Arlert. How nice of you to show up." I lowered my head, staring at the store's raggedy WELCOME mat in embarrassment. "Employees are expected to arrive by 8:30. At the latest."

I sighed and looked up, straight into my boss's narrowed grey eyes. She looked only a few years older than I, but her face was quite serious. She had an air of maturity about her… I shuddered, knowing I was usually uncomfortable around intimidating people. Then again, I'd gotten used to Mikasa after a while.

"I'm sorry, Miss Brzenska," I said, nearly stuttering. "It won't happen again, I swear. I was j-"

"You'd better make sure of that," she said curtly. "I'll expect you to open doors at 9 AM. Be ready and clean the shelves before then. Any complaints of your performance and I'll be cutting your paycheck." Turning away in a huff, my new boss disappeared into her office and promptly closed the door.

"Don't worry about her," chuckled an elderly man, donning a peculiar feathered fedora and conspicuously smoking. I faced the stranger, uncertain how to react. "She's just wound up. We've needed a replacement for the other girl for a while now. Oh, she was a fine young lady-" He paused, turning the newspaper page. "Shame she's left. Now what was I saying again… Ah! Rico's just nervous, that's all." He scrutinized me for a few seconds, shrugged, then scratched his moustache. "It seems like you have potential, young man. She'll come around, and if you were wondering, we've got a break room in the back…"

"Sorry, sir, but you'll have to put out your pipe," I said lamely, pointing at the NO SMOKING sign plastered to the wall. He'd been blathering on for a while now, but it seemed like he wouldn't stop.

The man stopped speaking abruptly, and I flinched, thinking he was angry, but he simply laughed.

"Sorry to get carried away, boy." The fellow gathered his papers. "I ought to be leaving soon, some business to attend to." He winked. "Good luck with your work here," said the man, tipping his hat as he sauntered out the door.

How exactly I'd come to land a job at an obscure bookstore means to know the whole of my past. But I can say that it pretty much started when I graduated from Maria Military Acadamey.

I'd struggled through the Academy like a sheep surrounded by wolves. No one was out to get me, but I still felt horribly misplaced. I attended because my best friends did: Mikasa and Eren. Grandfather was worried that I wouldn't make it through a single year of hardcore military-style classes, but I'd persevered. To be honest, I'd taken a strange liking to the ways they taught, of discipline and loyalty, and of companionship and strength. It wasn't that hard to warm up to my fellow students as well, and I found myself laughing alongside them.

Sometimes, I did have cases where I would feel anxious and unconfident in my skills, but I tried to overcome that. By the end of high school, I'd made friends, proved my worth, and gotten acceptance letters from several prestigious schools. I knew what I wanted to be – a tactician.

It all went by in a flash. Soon enough, it was graduation day. "Maria Military Academy is proud to present the graduating year's top scholar, Armin Arlert!" Cheering ensued, and I felt a sense of pride within me to have that honor. I hadn't expected to be awarded anything, to be honest, with me failing the majority of my physical classes, but I'd been recognized as an outstanding student. Intelligence-wise at least. Mikasa had been awarded overall Valedictorian, and no one was surprised at that.

"Armin!" he'd called. Eren waved at me, smiling wider than I'd ever seen. Mikasa was next to him, and even she couldn't suppress a smile. That image was burned into my memory as quite possibly the happiest moment of my life.

We gathered as the graduating class for one last picture, as a group. The tallest were sent to the back – mainly the obnoxiously tall Ymir and a softspoken boy named Bertholdt. I was closer to the front, me being short for a guy, along with the stingy transfer student from Europe. I edged a little away from her at first, but since it was the last day, I figured being kind could make some difference. I hadn't seen any of her family come.

I situated myself in between Connie Springer and the girl. She'd been infamous all year, and it was said she could even beat Reiner in combat. I'd never seen it myself – our schedules were completely different. Nevertheless, I tapped her on the shoulder and said, "Congratulations! We've graduated!" I gave her an encouraging smile. The girl didn't seem to react, but I couldn't see much past her hair and hoodie. All I could see were her nose and her mouth. I moved her bangs aside without thinking, and for a moment we stared at each other anew. Her eyes were startlingly bright blue, and she looked so surprised at that moment that I had to laugh. Mistaking my laughter for ridicule, she turned away and set her eyes straight towards the camera.

I simply decided not to say anything after that. The picture was taken, and we all moved our separate ways.

Eren and Mikasa, who were close enough to be mistaken for siblings, of course decided to attend the same military college. They left Maria City without much fuss, but I'd chosen to stay and rethink my future a bit more. The scholarships would pay for all my college endeavors, but… did I really want college?

So I decided to stay.

_What a wonderful day it's turning out to be_, I thought, wringing my hands nervously. I sat down in a rusty, metal chair, across where the old man had been. To be honest, I didn't expect them to hire me so quickly. Rather, she. As far as I knew, the only other person working at Expeditions was my boss, Rico. I hadn't even received proper training, but fortunately, I had an intermediate knowledge of how to take care of books. _Selling them should be easy enough,_ I muttered, reassuring myself.

My stomach growled, as if to make the morning any worse. I'd exited my apartment hastily, and now I regretted not snatching a loaf of bread, at least, to fill my empty gut.

I stood up, deciding to put all thoughts of hunger away and to focus on the tasks at hand. As I pushed back the chair, I noticed a fluttering motion out of the corner of my eye. It was a piece of paper, and as I picked it up, I saw that it was the front page of the old man's newspaper.

I was taken aback at the heading: "Four Mysteriously Killed; Police Baffled." I quickly read through the article, disturbed by the idea of a local murderer. It read:

"Cops are discouraged with what little evidence they collect regarding a murder case that has shocked people nationwide. At an easy-to-miss nature reservation, a small forest area is located bordering south east Rose City, where citizens on a camping trip discovered the mangled bodies of Gunther Schultz, Erd Jinn, Auruo Bossard, and Petra Ral – all brutally murdered. Detectives suspect that all four were killed by the same person; however, no evidence shows a significant connection between the dead. Investigators theorize that these killings are associated with that of Dita Ness, the grocer who disappeared after a day of horseback riding and was found disfigured a week later. After days of examination, the bodies are said to be fresh, and the murderer may still be in the community."

There were a few pictures included at the bottom – the victims. Three men and a woman. Two were businessmen: Schultz and Jinn, and under a caption it said they both enjoyed stand-up comedy. The third, Bossard, was a student, although he looked much older. The woman, Petra Ral, was a teacher, and an image depicted her elementary school students grieving at the funeral. _These people, average, innocent people, had died because of a selfish murderer_, I thought angrily. My fingers clutched the newspaper, wrinkling it. I was so preoccupied reading that I didn't even notice someone enter the store.

"Excuse me," said a voice, and I folded away the page. I turned away from the customer, trying to hide my embarrassment, and hurried behind the desk.

"Y-yes, welcome to Expeditions. Take a look around…" I stammered. I managed a grin, but the customer had already gone to browse the bookshelves. I had little else to do, so I followed the individual behind the fiction section and towards the reference books.

"Are you looking for anything in particular?" I asked. At least I could try to be helpful.

The customer shook his head. Now that I was closer, I realized I couldn't actually see his face; it was shrouded beneath white-blonde bangs and a hood.

I awkwardly laughed and excused myself, adding a "Well if you need assistance, I'm Armin..." but I doubt he was listening. And technically, I was the only employee present; I hadn't seen Rico exit her office since she'd stormed off.

As I walked back to the desk, the newspaper article fell out of my pocket. I hastened to pick it up, but the stranger snatched it away. He appeared to take an interest in it, and obviously the news of four murders would be shocking.

"Have you heard about those deaths? It's really quite appalling," I said, "It's fortunate that the bodies were found early enough. Now they've got to find that killer. On the loose, by the way, so you'd better be careful." He said nothing. I assumed he was shocked by the horrible predicament, since I had been stunned speechless as well. "This is upsetting, isn't it," I said, "Never a good way to start a morning. We have a few refreshments in the back, I think. Would you like some?"

The customer was rigid. I sincerely hoped it was nothing I'd said – Eren had noted that I was too trusting, too open to people far too quickly. I could never take that seriously; Eren was known to be paranoid. But now I had to watch how I was treating a customer.

"Are you alright, sir?" I asked, wondering if perhaps he had known one of the victims.

In the next minute, all hell broke loose.

The customer stepped back, and in the light I could see not a man, but a woman. _How could I have missed that?_ I thought stupidly. Her face wasn't one of grieving or sadness – it was a completely blank expression. Absolutely neutral. She terrified me, but even then, I started to apologize. She cut me off with a sharp kick to the shin. The stranger kneed me in the stomach, and I keeled over in pain. Out of her jacket sleeve, she pulled out a small knife.

_Oh, please God, don't let this be my end!_ I thought, weakly spitting up blood. I _am still young! I'm barely twenty-two – Jesus, my life cannot end here. _Feeling utterly pissed off with the entire morning turning into a disaster, I gurgled with the last of my strength:

"Why."

It was hardly a question to be answered. But she looked at me and stopped, the knife still pressed at my throat, and I could feel my pulse throbbing where she threatened to slice away my life. I was flooded with a mixture of emotions. I felt fear, of course, but also regret for what I have left unfinished and things I would never do. I stared up at the woman, and suddenly, I remembered something – something from four years ago, when I'd graduated. Something greatly important –

Then, in a second, the woman knocked me out cold.


End file.
